1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to techniques for producing, selling, and distributing articles of manufacture which is especially well suited for nonperishable articles but which could find applicability to perishable manufactured articles as well. The present invention depends upon an automated aggregation of orders and the visual representation of standardized shipping volumes such as containers and pallets.
2. Description of the Prior Art
At present, the manufacturers of non-perishable goods have obtained enormous economic and commercial advantage by having the non-perishable goods manufactured in remote locations, where economic, legal, regulatory, and labor conditions are favorable to manufacturers, resulting in relatively lower costs than can be obtained in other production markets. One primary example of this phenomenon is the increasing importance of The Peoples Republic of China and other less-developed Asian countries for the production of non-perishable consumer goods which are shipped to, and consumed by, first-world economies such as the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. The strong preference for this remote, third-world manufacturing is a primary factor for trade imbalances which exist between the United States and China. The consumer in the first world eventually benefits from this manufacturing scenario, but the immediate and primary benefit goes to the producers, distributors, and retailers of the nonperishable goods. As the product choices available to the consumer expand, consumers will typically begin viewing particular non-perishable goods as commodities. For example, television sets, stereo equipment, and computers are in large part viewed by most consumers as commodity items, and consumers are accordingly quite price sensitive. This is typically only true after the novelty of a particular item no longer commands a premium, and as competitive items are offered which include the desirable product features and functions.
Under this conventional manufacturing, sales, and distribution scenario, the consumer may or may not benefit from the relative advantages of the low cost of manufacturing the nonperishable goods; to the extent that the consumer does benefit, it is usually late in the product life, with the greatest consumer advantage typically being obtained as newer models or versions of the non-perishable goods are “rolled out” in order to replace older versions. In other words, the greatest economic advantage can be derived by the consumer by buying the non-perishable articles as they are being obsoleted by other products and newer versions of the same product. Many consumers are aware of this fact, and tend to purchase expensive items such as automobiles, computers, and the like, at the end of a product's life cycle in order to obtain the best commercial terms.
Additionally, under conventional sales and distribution techniques, relatively hefty margins are required for the non-perishable articles in order to take into account the time value of the capital which is “tied up” in products in the supply chain. Additionally, conventional distribution systems require a significant number of product units in order to fill a supply chain at all levels including the distribution level and the retail level. Of course, there is great danger for the manufacturer insofar as it may over-estimate demand and thus over-produce products which results in an “over-shoot” condition which generally results in steep discounting toward the end of the product life in order to deal with the “remainder” of the products which have not been sold. For example, this is a non-trivial aspect of book publishing, wherein remainder after markets are robust and are noteworthy for the steep (and sometimes below cost) discounting which must occur in order to deplete remaining inventory. Conversely, should the manufacturer underestimate the product acceptance and/or product demand, it generates an “under-shoot” condition, wherein there is not enough product to fill the supply chain and demand goes either unmet or is deferred until additional production runs can refill the supply chain. This is an undesirable condition insofar as fickle consumers may lose interest in a product before additional production runs are completed and product delivered to the retail outlets, or competitors may move in to fill the demand which can not be met for the product. Additionally, it is undesirable insofar as a series of successive production runs is inherently less efficient than a smaller number of large production runs, which results in an increase in the cost of goods sold and typically manifests itself as an increase in price or a reduction in profits. As a result of these factors and considerations, most manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers follow a simple pricing plan in which new products are introduced at an initial price which is, in some cases, the highest price that will ever be charged for the product, and proceed to repeatedly discount the price in order to deplete supply. Of course, this approach severely punishes those consumers who are “early adopters” or early purchasers of products, and can result in pricing strategies which are so aggressive that consumer interest and demand is essentially squelched before it can begin.
Additionally, in conventional commerce, goods that are manufactured off-shore are placed in intermodal containers and are transported (by combinations of air, boat, rail, and surface transport such as trucks) to warehouses where the containers are broken down and products are routed to wholesale distribution centers which further break down the products and deliver them to retail outlets. Again, in the allocation and distribution of products there can occur serious “over-shoot” and “under-shoot” conditions. An over-shoot condition is represented by the relative over supplying of products to any particular geographic region or commercial channel of trade. Conversely, an under-shoot condition is the disproportionate allocation of products which results in insufficient products in any particular geographic region or channel of trade. These distributions over-shoot and under-shoot scenarios are expensive to remedy since they require the repackaging and reshipping of product to different geographic locations or different channels of trade. Frequently, there are ancillary paperwork and accounting actions which must be performed in parallel with the decision making and transfer process. Of course, sales may be lost and consumers may be frustrated during such reallocation or reshuffling operations, or better organized and/or agile competitors may move in to fill the demand.